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Shade Gardening

I am finally back into my garden! I did not realize how much I missed it. I spent the last years distracted by various life events and for a time ignored my own needs and passions. Learned some valuable life lessons and returned to my roots, my tribe.

Design of pot attributed to Gertrude Jekyll

Thanks to a very mild winter, my garden this year has been sensational. EVERYTHING bloomed profusely.

Rose ‘New Dawn’ on the old chicken house

Right now I am enjoying the blooms of Hydrangeas I have not seen (in my garden) for years.

‘Fuji Waterfall’ aka ‘Shooting Star’ these American names given to ‘Hanabi’

Hydrangea serrata ‘Miyama Yae Murasaki’ (AKA Purple Tiers)

The secret garden

It is, however, not just about what is blooming. A ‘Garden’ must have structure and a narrative. Without these organizing principles, one simply has a collection of plants or chaos.

In my design lectures I talk about the 2 points of view on what makes a garden. One is that a garden is where one puts plants, and the other, to which I adhere, is that plants are used to create the garden.

The first is a ‘yard’. A garden is a refuge, an ongoing work of art to be honed and nurtured.

Below, a plant collector’s garden held together by it’s structure. (another post to follow about this garden & the gardener)

Ozzie Johnson’s Garden

What are your thoughts? What is more satisfying a yard or a garden?

photos of my garden, taken with cell phone. Ozzie’s wonderful garden with a real camera!

This is the first garden tour I attended this season, there are several more on the agenda. I promise to post about them all.

Nothing says Welcome quite like a gate. I saw several that intrigued me on the Gardens for Connoisseurs Tour to benefit The Atlanta Botanical Garden.

My friend Becky rushing in to get detail photos of this delightful gate. We were tripping over each other in excitement. look at these ….

Clever designs and beautiful workmanship. We loved all the details. Gates like these were in several of the gardens, a wonderful piece, both practical and whimsical.

Several of Atlanta’s finest private gardens open for this annual event. These are all designer gardens with regular and knowledgeable crews to tend them. They are perfectly groomed. One will never find a yellowing leaf, no space left where a plant was lost, some annual potted plant is placed in its stead, very tastefully.

Touches of whimsy…….

The summer containers were packed with perennial foliage plants and annuals.

I was particularly taken with a table centerpiece …..

and of course the peaceful sound of water.

Beautiful gardens…..

All in all a no miss event. With our weather this year, the gardens will be more beautiful that ever.

This is a fabulous year for the garden. The French Hydrangeas (Hydrangeamacrophylla) are full of buds and it promises to be quite a show. I hope I am not putting a Hex on it. Considering the unpredictable weather we are experiencing, tomorrow could bring an artic blast!

There are so many varieties I have not seen in years. The flower buds were killed by late frosts or some years, the stems are killed right to the ground. This has happened for several years; bad news for a gardener who loves them and has used them extensively in her plantings.( That would be me.)

Encouraged, I took many more cuttings.

I am also propagating two all white varieties ( Madame E. Mouillere & the lacecap White Wave) for my friend Mary who is creating an all white garden. She is well on her way and these white Hydrangeas will be the crowning touch. Isn’t it amazing how much patience a true gardener can exhibit?

My garden and I have matured. I no longer stress the small details and rely on good groundcovers through which I will plant some minor bulbs for more early spring interest.

Since groundcovers are all so similar in height is essential to play up contrast of either colour, or texture. Some of the better effects I had achieved in the woodland became so labor intensive, I had to abandon them completely. So my advice is “go simple’

Black Mondo Grass (Ophiopogon planiscapus ‘Nigrescens’ ) and Golden Clubmoss (Selaginella ‘Aurea’) were a stunning combination. Then the weeds came. I have to admit that for a few years I painted weed killer on them with an eyeliner brush!

I am very fortunate to have on my property many native wildflowers, while they are ephemeral and will disappear when the summer heat comes on, the low growing Vinca does a great job picking up the slack.

This mottled ginger (Asarum splendens) is one of several types I planted, it is the only one that has survived & thrived. It is located across from the Mourning Bench. This was the only area where I originally planted perennials. What comes up now are the tough survivors or the plants that re-seed.

When I was out walking in the garden today I was admiring the camellias. They are the evergreen structure that forms the bones of the garden and they bloom to boot!

daffodils in the Wordsworth meadow are up and some are already blooming …… but

the meadow was not cut last summer so there are plenty of weeds, and several trees and limbs are down. Victims of the heavy saturating rains and strong winds of late.

One of the first times I’ve seen the incredible flowers of the ‘evermottled’ ginger…….. blooming at ground level. I have not often seen them as I’m hesitant to crawl around the garden on all fours when it is cold and damp. This one just jumped out at me.

I can’t believe it’s already autumn. Time flies, as they say. So here’s what is happening in my garden.

While my Northern garden buddies are cutting back perennials and putting their gardens to sleep… I am enjoying an embarrassment of riches in the way of Camellia sasanqua blooms.

Some so profuse they look like cascading roses from a distance.

Last fall I finally found the Camellia sasanqua ‘Cotton Candy’ a favorite of my dear late friend Margaret Moseley. It was one she had recommended to me many years ago when I first started my garden, but I was never able to locate it. When it starts to bloom I will post a photo. I know Margaret would be pleased. Still on the lookout for Camellia ‘Martha’s Dream’ yet another of her early blooming favorites.

Camellia ‘Daydream’ which I rescued from a compost heap at a nursery. I followed the fragrance and found it. I have never seen it in the trade before or since. Of course the first time I saw it was in Margaret’s garden.